The last four years of the cozzie livs has taken no prisoners – not even cathedrals, palaces or museums are safe. If you’ve visited any of the UK’s major tourist attractions recently, you might have clocked that admission prices have gradually been going up.
Now, researchers at consumer group Which? have revealed the tourist attractions that have pushed their entry prices up the most over the last three years.
York Minster was the worst culprit for price increases. Its tickets have increased by a whopping 54 percent, from £13 in 2022 to £20 in 2025.
Oxfordshire’s Blenheim Palace and London’s Westminster Abbey, St Paul’s Cathedral and the Tower of London weren’t much better. They’ve all increased their admission by £5 in the last three years. A ticket to Winchester Cathedral has risen 40 percent from £10 in 2022 to £14 in 2025.
Westminster and the Tower of London are now both more expensive than Alton Towers, costing £30 and £34.50 respectively.
In a statement to the Independent, York Minster said: ‘Entrance to York Minster is free for those attending all acts of worship or to pray; for carers, accompanied children aged 17 and younger; and for York residents and York university students. Nor is there any additional cost for visitors who have purchased a York Pass.
‘We receive no regular government funding, or church funding beyond clergy stipends. We rely on the generosity of our visitors to raise a significant proportion of the more than £33,000 a day needed to ensure that we can open York Minster 365 days a year and care for its unique history and heritage.’
Westminster Cathedral also pointed out to Which? that it doesn’t receive any funding from the Church of England, the UK government or the Crown and that it is free for people visiting to pray.
But just because they’ve been forced to hike up prices, it doesn’t mean those attractions aren’t still worth the money. Other studies have looked into which tourist attractions are the ‘most disappointing’ and which are among the most ‘overpriced in the world’ – and none of the above are anywhere to be seen.
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